To Err Is Human
by DragonShadow
Summary: A car accident leaves Jasmine's confidence shaken to the point of collapse. Danny struggles to find a way to snap her out of it, but there may be far more to it than he realizes.
1. Chapter 1

There didn't seem to be much to note about this ordinary Monday morning, other than the haze of weariness that hung about the vision of Jasmine Fenton as she gulped down her breakfast. Her eyes felt like lead weights, but she felt somewhat better as she sipped at the coffee mug in her right hand, staring at the wall like it was doing a little dance for her amusement. Her mother was sitting at the head of the table, eating her own breakfast. Danny was still asleep, and her father was undoubtedly in his lab working on something ghost-related. 

Speaking of which, she heard a yawn as Danny walked into the kitchen, wearing his street clothes and looking almost as tired as she felt. "Good morning all." He announced groggily before making his way to the fridge to fix his own cereal. 

"Good morning Danny." Their mother Maddie said with a smile. This was one of those rare moments she removed her mask, her deep violet eyes shining. "How did you sleep last night?" 

"Okay I guess. I was up half the night studying." Danny sat down at the table across from Jasmine, setting a glass of Orange Juice beside his bowl. Jasmine shook her head, knowing better. The boy never studied or he wouldn't be a D+ student. She knew the truth... not that she would ever dare tell on him. 

"How about you, Jazz?" Maddie turned to her redheaded daughter, who took a moment to register that she was being spoken to. 

"Oh, I'm fine." Jasmine said with a yawn. "I was just up all night studying. We have a big exam today and I really don't want to screw it up." She said truthfully. Her mother smiled, but didn't have a chance to speak before Jasmine and Danny's father, Jack Fenton, swept into the kitchen in that cluelessly important way he had. 

"Maddie, have you seen the Fenton Stripper anywhere?" He glanced at Jasmine. "Jasmine, what happened to you? You look terrible... some ghost got to you in the middle of the night didn't he?" 

"No dad, I'm just tired. Didn't get enough sleep." Jasmine yawned. 

"I know better than that." Jack made his way around the table and put his hand on her shoulder worriedly. "This settles it, we're going to spend the day ghost-proofing your room." 

"Dad, I'm tired. It's a natural reaction to lack of sleep. Besides, I have school." Jasmine replied. 

"You can miss today." Jack insisted. 

"No, I'm not skipping school." Jasmine huffed. "How about you do it yourself while I go get an education so I can get a real job when I'm older?" 

"Jasmine, I can't do it myself. If you don't help the ghosts will know you're not serious and pass right through the barrier. You need to show them you mean business by helping me ghost-proof your room." Jack insisted. Jasmine narrowed her eyes, staring up at him in amazement. 

"So... this is a psychological ghost-barrier?" Jasmine asked. 

"Precisely! Nothing works against ghosts like psychology. And really big ecto-guns." Jack replied. Jasmine stared at him a moment, then lowered her gaze and stood up from the table. 

"I'm going to go to school now and pretend I have better genes than I really do." She walked around the table and grabbed her brother's wrist, dragging him out of his chair toward the front door. "Come on Danny, I'm driving you today." 

"Heeey! I'm not finished eating!" Danny complained as he was pulled out the front door toward Jasmine's car. 

"I'll stop and get you something on the way." Jasmine replied shortly. 

"I'm holding you to that." Danny grumped. They made their way to the can and climbed in, Jasmine taking the wheel and rubbing her eyes before turning the ignition. "You look pretty tired, are you sure you're up for this?" Danny asked. 

"Danny, please, don't insult me. I can handle a car." Jasmine growled as she backed out of the driveway and turned down the street in the direction of their school. Danny leaned against the passenger-side window, staring out at the passing traffic and street lights as they cruised down the road. Jasmine yawned and shook her head clear, then glanced over at him. "So... rough night huh? You wanna tell me about it?" Jasmine asked hopefully. 

"Nothing much to tell. I hate math." Danny replied. Jasmine sighed and turned back to the road, knowing this familiar conversational roadblock all too well. She was waiting for him to confide his ghost-powers in her, but for some reason he never did. Did she ever do something to make him trust her so little? The thought made her feel guilty, though she knew it was probably just normal sibling distancing. He was becoming his own man, and didn't want to rely on family anymore. 

"Fair enough." Jasmine replied smoothly. She pulled up to the drive-through of a nearby McDonald's and got Danny his promised food before taking off down the road again, tapping her fingers on the wheel and humming to herself. She let out another yawn and shook her head again. Man, she hoped exhaustion didn't do her in during the test after all that cramming she did last night. 

"Will you watch the road? You're starting to swerve." Danny told her. Jasmine blinked and suddenly realized the car was beginning to drift to the left. She turned back into her lane and ignored as her brother stared at her worriedly. 

"Just eat your breakfast..." Jasmine mumbled. Danny shook his head and turned to the back on his lap, pulling out his Egg McMuffin and sucking on his drink as they rode on toward the school. Just to be sure, Jasmine started to run through her studied in her mind, trying to make sure she was prepared for the test. Her mind faded into a whirlwind of questions and answers, swirling around each other in an almost taunting manner. She didn't even notice as the world began to fade into blackness, swallowed by the swirling, taunting messages that whirled through her mind. 

She jerked in shock when she heard a tremendous impact mere moments later. Her eyes opened to see her car up against the side of a brick building, the front hood smashed dangerously far back while thick plumes of black smoke poured into the sky. Jasmine blinked in shock, thinking for a moment that she must be dead... she was even floating in the air. But a glance above her head showed a familiar head with snow-white hair and glowing green eyes peering down at her worriedly. 

"Hey, are you okay?" Danny Phantom asked. Jasmine just stared at him numbly, then turned her gaze back to the wrecked car in front of her. 

"Y... yeah, I guess..." Jasmine's voice shook as she spoke. Had she fallen asleep? She hadn't even felt herself drift off, and yet here she was staring at the wrecked ruins of her vehicle. Danny lowered them down toward the ground, setting her on the sidewalk and landing beside her. Jasmine just stared at the thick plumes of smoke that whirled into the sky. 

"You should be okay now J... uh... miss." Danny said, putting on his best tough man voice. "Don't worry about your brother, I already saved him. I'll just... uh... go get him." With that Danny nodded and turned to fly in the other direction, his legs fading into a single ghostly tail as he went. Jasmine watched him go, then turned to walk slowly toward the car. 

She moved around it, peering inside the driver's side window. The steering wheel had been shoved into the back of the seat... a position that would have easily broken her spine if she'd stayed in the car. But even worse was the passenger's side. Shards of the shattered windshield were embedded throughout the seat, punching straight through it in some places. She could picture the scene if Danny had remained in the car... 

The thought made her knees tremble and she collapsed to the ground, staring at the totaled car in shock. She heard Danny's normal voice calling to her as if from a distance, though he was now standing right beside her. "Jazz? Are you okay? Jazz, speak to me!" Danny grabbed her shoulders and shook her, trying to get a response. Jasmine's gaze slowly turned to look at him, seeing his bright blue eyes alive and well. 

She reached out and grabbed her little brother suddenly, wrapping him up in a tight hug. Danny yelped in surprise when he was yanked up against her, but didn't try to pull back. "Danny... I'm so, so sorry..." Jasmine said in a trembling, fearful voice. "You were right... I never should've... God, are you sure you're okay?" 

"Hey, come on, stop that." Danny said softly, though he made no move to push her away. "I'm a little freaked out by the hugging, but otherwise yeah, I'm fine. I promise." He told her. Jasmine nodded slightly, but didn't let go, clinging to him until she heard the sound of approaching sirens. At last she let him slide out of her grasp and slid to her butt on the sidewalk, her limbs trembling too much to stand as two police officers climbed out of the car to approach them. 

"What happened here?" One of the officers demanded as he approached the two. There was a crowd forming around the smoking vehicle and the pair of Fenton kids, watching with morbid interest. Jasmine stared up at him, unable to speak. So Danny stepped in front of her. 

"It was just an accident. My sister was tired and she just fell asleep at the wheel." Danny explained. "It's okay though, Danny Phantom saved us before we hit the wall. We're both okay." 

"We're glad to hear that." The officer replied. "But we're still going to have to take care of all this. Can we see her driver's license?" He demanded. Jasmine blinked and reached into her purse withdrawing her license from her wallet and handing it up to the officer as he approached her. "Don't get in such a rut girl, we're not going to arrest you or anything. Accidents happen, and the important thing is nobody was harmed. We just have to clear up the financial responsibilities." Jasmine nodded and the officer turned to head back to his squad car while his partner began to take pictures of the scene. 

Danny turned to Jasmine, who watched the cops work with a blank gaze. "Jazz, are you okay?" He asked worriedly. Jasmine turned her gaze upward slowly, staring at him with eyes wet with brimming tears of fear and uncertainty. 

"No... I'm so sorry Danny..." Jasmine looked down and wiped at her eyes, her shoulders beginning to shake. "My stupidity put you in serious danger... I'm so sorry..." Danny watched with a worried expression, but couldn't do anything as his precious redheaded sister sobbed on the sidewalk, her face covered in one hand and her shoulders shaking violently. There was nothing he could do... Jasmine had never screwed up so badly in her life. She didn't know how to handle it... so she cried.

* * *

_(He's a phantom)   
(Danny Phantom... Phantom... Phantom...) _

Young Danny Fenton, he was just fourteen   
When his parents built a very strange machine   
It was designed to view a world unseen   
(He's gonna catch them all 'cuz he's Danny Phantom) 

When it didn't quite work, his folks they just quit   
Then Danny took a look inside of it   
There was a great big flash, everything just changed   
His molecules got all rearranged   
(Phantom... Phantom...) 

When he first woke up he realized   
He had snow white hair and glowing green eyes   
He could walk through walls, disappear, and fly   
He was much more unique than the other guy   
It was then that he knew what he had to do   
He had to stop all the ghosts that were coming through   
He's here to fight for me and you 

He's gonna catch them all, 'cuz he's Danny Phantom   
He's gonna catch them all, 'cuz he's Danny Phantom   
He's gonna catch them all, 'cuz he's   
**Danny Phantom**

* * *

To Err Is Human

Danny Fenton walked through the halls of Casper High with his two best friends, carrying his backpack slung over one shoulder. They were chatting companionably as they made their way toward the front door of the school, after classes had ended. Danny hadn't shown up until the day was already half over, and Jasmine had refused to come to school at all. 

"Just give her some time Danny." Sam said logically. "She's such a perfectionist the idea that she messed up probably hit her harder than it would a sane human being." 

"Just what are you saying?" Danny whirled on her angrily. "She's not crazy!" 

"Hey, I was joking!" Sam raised her hands innocently. "Come on, don't get so intense. Seriously, just give her some time to think it through, I'm sure she'll come back to her senses at some point. She's a smart girl after all." Sam commented as the three of them made their way out of Casper High onto the streets of Amity Park. 

"Yeah... sorry." Danny sighed. Sam smiled and patted his shoulder comfortably, but quickly removed it when Tucker cleared his throat. 

"Anyway, are you still coming to Sam's place tonight Danny?" Tucker asked. "Movie marathon night." 

"You know, you have a house too. We've been having these marathons at my place for several months now. Why don't we break the routine and come over to your place?" Sam narrowed her eyes. 

"And go back to a 25 inch TV when you have a 2,500 inch? No thanks." Tucker replied. "Besides, you can afford the popcorn." Sam sighed and rolled her eyes. 

"I might be there, it depends on what happens at home." Danny replied morosely. "I'll definitely at least swing by for a visit." 

"You do what you have to do Danny, and we'll be here for you any time you need us." Sam said. 

"Just try to make it between movies." Tucker added. 

"I'll do that." Danny smiled slightly. "Thanks you guys. I'll catch up with you later." Danny waved as he turned to walk toward his place. He wasn't in a big hurry, walking in the bright afternoon sunlight with his hands jammed inside of his pockets. When he reached his house he went inside and closed the door behind him, making his way into the basement where he found his parents working on one of their many ghost-hunting inventions. "Hey, guys?" 

Maddie Fenton looked up from her work and flashed him a kind smile. "Hey Danny. How was school?" 

"A drag." Danny replied simply before cutting right to the chase. "How's Jazz been? She was pretty shook up when I left." 

"She's been in her room resting." Maddie replied. "But I think she'll be okay. Are you sure you're okay Danny? You seem awfully calm." 

"Oh, well yeah, I'm fine." Danny replied with a nervous smile. "Guess the shock just hasn't set in for me yet." Maddie smiled back and turned back to her invention, while her husband worked behind her. "I'm just going to go check on Jazz." With that Danny left the basement and made his way up to the second floor, stopping outside of his sister's bedroom. He took a moment to turn his head intangible and peek inside, seeing his sister sitting on her pillow writing in one of her journals. Her eyes were bloodshot and her cheeks stained with tear streaks. 

Danny pulled back and turned normal again before knocking on the door. He waited until Jazz replied "it's open" before turning the knob and stepping inside. Jazz was sitting where she was before, but the journal had mysteriously vanished. "Hey Danny." Jazz said with a forced smile. "How was school?" 

"Do you really have to ask?" Danny asked with a humorous smile as he walked into the center of the room. "Look, you shouldn't be so hard on yourself over the whole car thing. We're both fine, and you'll get your license back in a few months." 

"Danny, I was responsible for it." Jasmine replied darkly. "I was responsible for YOU, and I failed in my duty to keep you safe." She looked down at the floor, obviously fighting back a fresh wave of tears. "You even tried to warn me against driving today, but I was too stupid to listen." She smirked, closing her eyes. "You warned me about Johnny too, and I didn't listen then either... and once again, you were right. When did you become so much smarter than me?" 

Danny couldn't help but laugh. "Me? Smarter than you? Come on, you're just pulling my leg now." He laughed. His laughter subsided when his sister didn't speak or look up, just keeping her head down and her eyes closed. "Jazz, I'm not smarter than you. You made one mistake, a mistake thousands of people have made. It doesn't make you stupid." 

"Well it almost got you killed Danny!" Jasmine shouted angrily. "Can everybody say that?" She turned away from him suddenly, hiding her face behind her hand and looking down at her bed. "Please, just leave me alone..." She requested softly. Danny stared at her for a minute, then climbed to his feet. 

"Okay. But I don't blame you for anything Jazz, and neither does anyone else. It was a simple mistake, and doesn't mean anything besides that you're just as human as the rest of us." Danny blinked, quickly catching himself. He thought he saw a smirk on Jazz's face, but couldn't be sure since it was still hidden behind her hand. "If you want to talk... you know where to find me." 

Danny left the room, closing the door behind him and heading into his room. There wasn't much to do now but wait for the marathon if Jasmine wouldn't talk to him. So he sat down in front of his computer and turned it on, leaning back and waiting for it to boot with his hands behind his head. Suddenly he felt the breath catch in his throat and a silvery blue mist emanated from his mouth. 

"Ghost sense?" Danny sat up quickly and looked around, but didn't see anything out of the ordinary. He left his room and made his way into the hallway, but everything looked completely normal. Cautiously he turned into his Ghost Mode and made a quick scan of the house, but nothing was amiss. His parents were still tinkering with their inventions downstairs, and Jasmine had gone back to her journal. Danny scratched his head and landed in his room, turning back into his normal self. Perhaps a ghost just flew too close to the Fenton Portal. It happened sometimes. 

He played computer games until a quarter to seven, when he left the house to make his way to Sam's mansion toward the edge of Amity Park. She answered his knock with a surprised smile. "Danny! Hey, I didn't think you'd be around tonight." She stepped back to let him in. 

"Yeah well, I don't get to come over here often enough." Danny looked around at the large, lavishly decorated house as he walked inside, taking in the sheer expensiveness of it all. She'd kept this place a secret for a long time, not wanting her family's comfortable position known to her friends, or anyone at school for that matter. "Where's Tuck?" 

"He's already downstairs drooling on my TV." Sam rolled her eyes. "You want something to eat before we head down?" 

"Sure, what you got?" Danny replied. Sam waved for him to follow and led the way from the lavishly decorated living room to the expansively shiny kitchen, where everything gleamed so brightly it was as if everything was made of diamonds. "Got any sunglasses?" Danny squinted and put his hand up to block the glare. 

"Now do you see why I like the dark so much?" Sam smirked and opened the refrigerator door. "Looks like we have some Chinese left over from last night." She said. 

"Works for me." Danny said as his eyes finally began to adjust to the bright lights. He stepped toward the fridge, but the lights were still shining in his eyes and he stumbled against the counter top, plunging into Sam and knocking her against the counter. His arms shot out to catch himself, gripping the countertop on either side of Sam's waist. She was leaning back over the counter, a look of surprise on her face. 

"Danny?" She exclaimed in surprise. They stared at each other for a few moments, then Danny's face turned beet red and he pulled back, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. 

"S... sorry... I tripped." Danny said clumsily. 

"It's okay... they keep the floors freshly waxed. It can get kind of slippery." Sam looked as red as him as she turned to split the container of Chinese food into two equal portions. Neither of them spoke while the food was heated and they made their way downstairs, where Tucker was lying on the couch with a bored expression on his face. 

"It's about time. I was just about to start the movie without you two." Tucker said. 

"We haven't even picked a movie yet." Sam replied. 

"We're watching Vampire Vixens Six: The Director's Cut." Tucker grinned. Sam and Danny exchanged a droll glance, then each took their seats on the couch silently while Tucker leaned back luxuriously in the recliner beside them. They sat through the very 'R' rated movie, feigning disinterest though there were some parts Danny found himself very fascinated by. Sam just yawned through the whole thing, pretending they weren't there until it finally ended. 

The night went on without further event, fading into a string of movies Danny probably wouldn't remember the next day. And indeed he had forgotten all about them, for some reason only remembering the moment in the kitchen with Sam after he'd tripped. He'd been able to feel her breath on his face they were so close... it was all he could think about all morning. But she was promptly replaced when his mother finally coaxed Jasmine out of her room. 

She looked like a mess. A pale face surrounded by a messy red tangle of unbrushed and unwashed hair. She was barely moving as her mother pulled her out of the room into the kitchen to get her some breakfast. "Now sit down and I'll make you some French Toast dear." Maddie smiled before turning to the counter to prepare the promised dish. Danny stared at his sister worriedly, a knot forming in the pit of his stomach. 

"Are you okay?" Danny asked. Jasmine looked at him, bus her face only grew paler when she saw him and she turned back to the table. Her shoulders seemed to slump even more than before, her gaze downcast. Danny felt a bit guilty, knowing she was upset because of him. But he had no idea what he could do about it, so he just tried not to upset her even more throughout breakfast. 

Maddie volunteered to drive them to school since Jasmine's driver's license was revoked. They drove to school in the armored tank Jack and Maddie invented since Jasmine's car was totaled. The whole ordeal only seemed to make Jasmine even paler and more upset, and soon Danny found himself sitting alone in the back of the armored van with her. 

"How are you feeling, Jazz?" Danny tried again to strike up a conversation. 

"I'm good, Danny." Jasmine replied with obviously fake enthusiasm. "How about you?" 

"Good, I guess..." Danny trailed off as Jasmine turned back to staring at the floor. He sighed and gave up, waiting until they reached school to emerge and join his friends in the hallway in front of his locker. 

"Hey Danny. You look bummed. And Jazz looks worse." Sam jerked her thumb down the hallway where Jasmine was rooting through her locker, her shoulders slumped noticeably and her face pale. "She makes me look like the head of the cheerleading squad." 

"I know. I don't know how to get through to her that nobody blames her." Danny replied. "It's like all the confidence is being sucked out of her or something. She won't accept that what happened isn't some personal flaw." He shook his head and turned to Sam and Tucker. "Anyway, what are our plans after school? I was thinking we could hit the water park." 

"Ugh, I hate that place. Are you sure you wouldn't rather come to a Goth poetry..." She trailed off when she saw the expressions on the boys' faces. She sighed. "Okay, gawking at girls in bathing suits it is." Danny and Tucker exchanged a high five, then laughed and turned to head down the hallway. Sam followed behind them until they all heard a startled shriek from a nearby classroom. 

"No! You can't do this to me! I couldn't control what happened, I just couldn't be here!" Jasmine's voice sounded panicked as it floated from a nearby classroom. Danny, Sam, and Tucker exchanged a glance before creeping along the wall to slide up to the door to hear better. "Please, you've got to let me take a makeup exam. I can't have this mar my record!" Danny peeked into the classroom to see. 

"I'm sorry Miss Fenton, but you know my policy on make up exams. Only if you call out in advance, which you did not. You get an F. I'm sorry." The teacher handed Jasmine a sheet of paper. "Now please, take your seat." He turned to walk behind his desk, leaving Jasmine to stare down at the paper with a numb look on her face. The arm holding the paper fell limp at her side and she turned to walk to her seat, ignoring the rest of the students. 

"Wow..." Danny pulled away from the classroom, looking at his friends. "An F. She's never gotten an F in anything. She's never gotten below a B minus." 

"That'll be a real confidence booster." Sam quipped snidely. 

"It's just a 'missed test' F, you don't think she'd take it personally, do you?" Tucker asked. 

"With the mood she's been in, it wouldn't surprise me. I'll have a talk with her tonight, see if I can get through that stubborn skull of hers." Danny replied. 

"Guess that means our water park plan gets cut short." Tucker sighed. 

"Sorry Tuck, I'll make it up to you. For now, let's just get to class." Danny turned to head down the hall again, followed by his two friends. The rest of the school day was uneventful, though Danny felt a greater sense of sympathy every time he saw Jasmine pass him in the hallway. The F seemed to have made her even worse. By the time school let out her shoulders were so slumped she looked ready to pass out, and her expression was that of a distracted goldfish. 

Danny bid his friends a hasty goodbye and rushed after her toward their house as she shuffled slowly along the sidewalk with her books clutched in her arms. "Hey, Jazz?" Danny called as he ran up beside her, slowing down to pace her. "How are you feeling?" 

"I'm falling into a world of despair from which there can be no mortal escape..." Jas grumbled. 

"Uh..." Danny hesitated a moment, completely unprepared for an answer like that. "Nuh-uh." 

"Sorry, I don't mean to bother you with my problems. How was your day at school, Danny?" Jasmine asked with a forced smile. This only made Danny feel even guiltier. Even when she was mentally ripping herself apart she wouldn't take it out on him. He half wished she would scream at him or call him names or something. Just so he'd he able to be mad at her and not feel so bad. 

He decided to stop trying to be tactful; he was no good at it. Instead he grabbed one of her wrists. "Look, forget about me. I'm more worried about you." Jasmine blinked and gave him a look of surprise. "You can't keep doing this to yourself. It's only been one day and you look like you're ready to collapse." He said. 

"Maybe I am..." Jasmine replied softly. "I don't deserve to stick around here..." 

"Stop that!" Danny yelled desperately. "Don't you ever start saying things like that!" 

"Sorry Danny... I don't mean to worry you." Jasmine replied guiltily. Danny growled and dropped her wrist, turning to walk home with her again silently. She walked along with him, as if carrying some invisible burden on her back. They reached the house in a little while and Jasmine unlocked the door, heading inside and shuffling toward the staircase. She stopped at the bottom of the stairs and turned to look back at him. 

"Look, Danny, I really am sorry." Jasmine said. 

"Stop being sorry!" Danny shouted. "Geeze, fine! If you want to beat yourself up over the stupidest little things, go ahead! Why should I care? You're not going to listen to me anyway!" Danny shouted. Jasmine looked for a moment like she was going to break down again, but instead she just turned to shuffle slowly up the stairs, taking each step like she was tightrope walking across the Grand Canyon. 

Danny's heart sank, but he didn't know what else to do. She wouldn't listen to reason, and she was normally the reasonable one. He turned to head into the kitchen, but stopped when the breath caught in his throat, a silvery blue mist emanating from his mouth. False alarms weren't so uncommon as to worry him. Having two in two days was extremely unusual. He went into the basement to make sure his parents were okay, then turned to make his way upstairs cautiously. 

He peeked in various rooms as he passed, spotting nothing out of the ordinary. He made his way slowly up to Jasmine's room, stopping outside for a moment before reaching for the doorknob. Suddenly a pair of black holes opened in the door, with white pupils glaring at him. A growl emanated from the door and suddenly it flung itself open outward, knocking him back against the other side of the wall with a thud. 

"Agh!" Danny howled as he slid to the floor. "Hey! Try knocking next time!" Danny shouted as he climbed to his feet. He clenched his fists, and his body began to shift. A pitch black suit as dark as the night save for his boots, gloves, and white "D" on his chest covered his body, a head of pure snow white hair covered his head, and spectral glowing green eyes peered out from a tanned face. 

The door slammed shut again, and a lime green liquid fell to the ground in front of it, reshaping itself into a samurai with a massive blade as long as Danny was tall. It swung the blade in a wide arc, but it went straight through Danny as he went intangible to avoid it. "Gee, that's gonna work. Let me try now!" Danny lurched forward, slamming one fist into his attacker's face. It flew down the hallway and plummeted down the stairs with a thunderous clanging of armor. 

Danny followed the spirit down the stairs, raising one fist behind him. But the samurai raised the blade again, swinging suddenly for his head. He weaved to the side and landed in the living room, skidding to a crouch before whirling to keep track of his opponent. The samurai had climbed to his feet and was charging at him again. 

Danny dodged the next two horizontal swings, then leapt over the next and planted a solid kick across his opponent's face. This time the samurai whirled with the kick, his blade whirling until it came down in a wide vertical arc. Danny leapt to the side and it sliced the living room couch right in half, pieces of white fluff raining down everywhere. 

"Hey! I like that couch!" Danny exclaimed angrily, his fists pulsing with bright green energy. The samurai lunged at him again, the massive blade sparkling. Danny whirled to the side and flung a green blast at his opponent, but it reflected off of the thick samurai armor, punching a smoldering hole through the wall behind him. "Well, that's not a good idea." 

He ducked as the blade swung in another horizontal arc, then came down vertically on top of him. "You know, for a samurai you don't have many moves. This is getting boring." Danny clenched his glowing green fist and brought it up in a vicious uppercut. The blast cut through the middle of the blade, sending more than half of it flying across the room to embed itself into the wall. The samurai stumbled in surprise, and Danny lurched forward to punch him in the chest, sending him flying against the wall. 

Dazed by the last blow, the samurai's form shifted again into that of a squat, goofy looking man with white hair and a black formal tuxedo. A form Danny had seen twice already. "Bertrand? You're Penelope Spectra's lackey, what are you doing here alone?" Danny demanded. 

"Who said I was alone?" Bertrand grinned. 

"What are you doing here!" Danny repeated and grabbed the front of his coat and held him against the wall, raising one glowing green fist. "Talk!" 

"It doesn't matter if I do or not. You're already too late." Bertrand grinned. Danny stared at him, thinking. Bertrand had attacked him as he searched the house... more precisely, when he'd been about to enter Jasmine's room. 

"JAZZ!" Danny dropped Bertrand and whirled to fly at the ceiling, going intangible. He heard Bertrand's laugh fade behind him as he phased through the ceiling, coming out into his sister's bedroom. He saw her sitting on the bed with her hands hanging limp at her sides, turned away from him. "Jazz? I mean... miss? Have you seen anything strange?" He approached the bed slowly, trying to get a look at his sister's face. 

"Wrong?" Jasmine's voice was strangely low, and a deep rumbling undertone set Danny on edge as she turned around slowly. She had a victorious grin on her face, and her eyes had gone blood red. "Nothing's wrong anymore. I finally have my youth!" She stood up with a triumphant yell, throwing her fists into the air. "Oh it feels so good! Not only do I have my youth back, but I have a real, human body to boot!" 

"Spectra!" Danny dropped into a crouch, his eyes pulsing green. "What do you think you're doing? Get out of there before I get you out!" 

"I don't think you understand." Penelope grinned. "I feed on the misery of others... it is my nourishment. And depression is a self-perpetuating cycle of disappointment and despair! It took only a small nudge to get this girl into that spiral... and since YOU so kindly pushed her over the brink into full-on depression, I can move in, feed on it, and take her body! Permanently!" She laughed, throwing her head back. "I am now alive and immortal!" 

"Me?" Danny exclaimed in surprise. 

"Yes, you. Having you yell at her was the last straw, because she wanted nothing more than to keep you safe and happy. What might have taken weeks was accomplished in a second because of you. Thank you so much, now I'm going to go enjoy my prize." She turned toward the window. 

"No you don't! I won't let you!" Danny lunged forward, bringing his fist back. But he stopped when his fist was inches away from hers, his sister's kind, innocent face twisted by Penelope's presence. 

"You won't hit me. Everything you do to me happens to her." Penelope grinned. Danny growled and searched for a way to stop her... but he could find nothing. "Farewell, Danny Phantom. I'll make sure your sister has a long, wonderful life." She laughed and turned to run at the wall. Her body turned intangible just before it hit and she flew out across the sky away from him. Danny ran to the window and stared out after her helplessly. 

"Jazz..." Danny clutched the windowsill tightly, staring out after his sister's body as it faded into the distance. "I will save you. I promise."

* * *


	2. Chapter 2

* * *

Danny Fenton made his way back down to the living room, once again in his normal form. Bertrand was gone now, leaving behind him the carnage that their battle had wrought on the living room. Danny wandered through the living room numbly and emerged out onto the streets. The citizens of Amity Park went on about their business, ignorant of what had just happened. 

He turned and jogged the short distance to the water park, turning invisible and slipping past the guards that prevented people from sneaking in. He searched the park as fast as he could, and soon found Sam floating in the slow-moving river that moved around the edge of the park so lazy patrons could get around without walking. 

He floated up over the river and moved over to Sam. "Hey, Sam." Sam sat up suddenly, her body sinking under the water up to her shoulders. 

"Danny?" She looked around aimlessly since he was still invisible. "You snuck into the park? That's not like you." 

"I'm not here to play around, something serious has happened, and I need your help." Danny said urgently. Sam snapped to attention and nodded seriously. Danny reached down to grab Sam's arm, turning her invisible and hauling her out of the water. He flew out of the water park, taking off across the town toward with the girl in tow until he reached her mansion and set down in front of it, turning them both visible. "You can get dressed." Danny said, his voice shaking. 

"Okay... I'll just be a second." Sam went inside and made her way up to her room while Danny walked in and stopped in the living room. He walked to the couch and plopped down onto it, reaching up to put a hand on his forehead. He couldn't believe he'd let them get to Jasmine... let alone that he'd helped make her susceptible to Penelope's control. How could he have been so stupid? 

He looked up when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Sam was now dressed in her street clothes, and was staring down at him with a worried expression on her face. "Danny, what's going on here? You're starting to scare me." 

"Jazz is gone..." Danny said softly. "Penelope Spectra took over her body and bolted, and now I don't know where she is, or even what I'd do if I found her!" Danny shouted in frustration. Sam stepped back in surprise. A sigh escaped his lips and he slumped his shoulders. "Sorry, I don't mean to take it out on you. I just wish I could've done something..." 

"Well, did she say anything about what she was going to do now? Most of these ghosts have a tendency to shout out their motives and plans." Sam said. Danny thought about it for a minute. 

"She did say she was alive again... do you think she'd try to pick up her life where she left off?" Danny asked. 

"That sounds like a good bet. We just have to figure out where that is. Come on." Sam gripped Danny's shoulder and turned to lead him up to her bedroom. Danny was taken off-guard by the sharp contrast between her room and the rest of the house. The muted, but still rich and powerful colors of the rest of the house faded to black and deep violet. The only hint of Sam's money came from the computer set up in the corner of the room. 

"Wow... I've never been in your bedroom before." Danny said as he looked around. He blinked at a bat poster stuck onto the ceiling. "It's... nice." 

"Beats decorating with pink ponies like every other girl." Sam sat down on her bed and pulled her sleek laptop computer off of the nightstand at the foot of the bed. She turned it on and leaned back while it began to boot up. "Make yourself at home, you look pretty beat." 

"Thanks." Danny sat down on the edge of her bed beside her, falling onto his back on the sheets with a deep sigh. Sam smiled down at him, but turned back to her computer when the desktop popped up on the screen. She logged onto the Internet and began to type. "Find anything interesting?" Danny pushed himself up onto his elbow and looked over her shoulder. 

"Hey... I found something." Sam clicked into a web page, and a picture of a woman looking similar to Penelope Spectra appeared on the screen, though her face was spotted with wrinkles and her body looked bony and frail. Underneath her were several paragraphs of text. "It's the Spectra Family Tree... and this picture is really old. It looks like she died almost thirty years ago." 

"Does it say anything else?" Danny asked curiously. Sam scrolled down on the screen a bit and began to read. 

"Dr. Penelope Spectra was born here in Amity Park. She moved to Nevada and got a Master's Degree in psychology at UNLV and became a therapist in Las Vegas. She lived out the rest of her life there helping teens cope until she died of a heart-attack at age eighty-seven." Sam stopped and mused for a moment. "That explains why she's so obsessed with keeping her youth... she died really old. But if she was helping people, why would she feed off of misery now?" 

"Maybe she plans to try to contact some of her relatives. See if there are any addresses or something to go on." Danny suggested. Sam nodded and tapped at the keyboard. 

"No luck, the addresses of her living relatives aren't listed. But I do have her old address in Vegas." Sam pressed the print button on her computer, and a paper soon emerged from the side of the sleek laptop. She looked back at Danny, and jerked slightly when she saw his face to close to hers. "Uh... hi." She said, her face turning red. 

"Huh? Oh... right." Danny blushed and moved away from her shoulder, trying to ignore his own red face as he took the paper from her. "I guess I can ask around her old neighborhood, see if anyone else can give me something to go on." He moved off of the bed and stood up, stretching his back out after sitting for a while. 

"Maybe I should come with you. We could search faster that way." Sam suggested. 

"Thanks, but no way. I'm not risking anyone else getting nabbed by any ghosts. I'll catch up with you later." Danny's body flashed and he soon stood in his ghost form. He flew through the wall and took off through the air, pushing through the sky as fast as he possibly could. His legs melted into a single ghostly tail, making him even faster. 

It took him several hours of constant flight to reach the city of Las Vegas, and he was panting heavily, but he didn't care. He would fly twice that far to save his sister if it came down to it. He searched until he found Penelope's old address and landed in front of the building. It looked like it had been abandoned for decades, a run-down hovel that was also, strangely enough, covered in ashes in many places. 

Danny made his way inside curiously, walking through the outer wall into the blackened living room. He moved through the building, staying intangible so he didn't have to worry about broken floors or cobwebs getting in his hair. He stopped when he heard a soft sound from the back of the house, listening for a moment before moving to investigate. 

He saw a red-haired girl knelt down on the ashes in one of the smaller bedrooms, her hand resting on the ground. In fact, it was Jasmine, running her hands over the floor like it was a precious jewel. Danny narrowed his eyes and stepped forward, but he leapt back in shock when a glowing green form dangled in front of him. Losing his concentration, his intangibility faded, and the creature grabbed him, hauling him into the ceiling. 

"Yaaaahhhhh!" Danny yelled as he was flung across the roof of the house, bouncing off the edge before falling fifteen feet to the sidewalk below. "Augh... maybe I should've gone invisible too..." Danny grunted and sat up, rubbing his back painfully. He looked up to see a glowing spectral green form staring down at him with blood red eyes. As he watched Jasmine's body appeared on the roof beside him, her blood red eyes narrowed in fury. 

"How DARE you desecrate this place!" Penelope howled hatefully. "Nobody can ever come onto this ground! It's sacred!" 

"Sacred? Guess I shouldn't do this either then!" Danny picked up a rock and chucked it at the building. One of the few remaining windows on the building shattered inward, causing Penelope to growl darkly. "Wow, this is fun. I just wish I had some eggs so I could do this properly!" Danny smirked. 

"Bertrand!" Penelope screamed angrily. "GET HIM!" 

"My pleasure!" The green blob beside her threw itself off the roof, reforming in mid-air as it fell. When it landed its shape was that of a Vilociraptor, its lips pulled back in a vicious snarl across sharp, pointed teeth and its blood red eyes narrowing dangerously. 

"Just how many times do you want me to kick this guy's butt?" Danny quipped with a smirk. "But I'm always up for another go if you insist!" He lunged forward, leaping upward as Bertrand's tail whipped at the air where he'd been. He brought his foot down on top of the creature, but one jaw opened and clamped down on it, biting down hard and flinging him into a nearby light pole. 

Danny fell to the ground in front of the pole, gasping as the raptor charged at him head first, its jaws wide. Danny crouched and threw himself backwards, phasing through the light pole just before Bertrand could reach him. The powerful jaws latched onto the steel pole, biting straight through it and bringing it crashing to the ground. 

Danny lurched back away from the creature as it stomped forward, a victorious grin on its face. Danny feigned to the left, then dove to the right and vanished under the street before Bertrand could figure out what was going on. He came up underneath the powerful creature, wrapping his arms around its throat and thrusting both legs into its stomach, throwing it into the air. It slammed into the street with a heavy thump, rolling onto its side. 

Danny ran to capitalize on his advantage, but the dinosaur's form shifted and Danny found himself facing a massive bear with almost equally massive claws. They raked down the front of Danny's chest, throwing him back to the lawn in front of the burned down hovel that was Penelope's old house. Danny rolled to his feet quickly, bracing himself as the spectral bear charged at him. 

Danny threw himself forward suddenly, phasing through the bear as it tried to swipe at him viciously. Danny emerged out the other side and whirled, planting a solid kick to the animal's back that sent it lurching forward. Danny whirled and kicked again several more times, driving it forward until it suddenly spun and grabs his foot, grabbing his foot and slamming him into the ground. 

Danny clawed at the ground desperately to try to get out of its grasp, but Bertrand held onto him, hauling him into the air and hurling him at one of the trees on the front lawn. He hit the trunk with a sickening thunk and slowly slid down the side of it to the lawn. He held his head in a daze, watching as the bear approached him. 

Bertrand approached and raised one massive paw, letting out a vicious roar. Danny growled and cupped his hands beside him, pulsing spectral energy gathering between them until he threw his hands forward with a howl of his own. The power slammed into the bear's chest, pausing it for a moment before Danny growled and pumped out even more energy, throwing it backward straight into the wreckage of the burned out old hovel. What little of the house was still standing collapsed from the strain, falling inward until it was little more than a pile of debris and ash. 

Danny floated up from the ground, pulling the Fenton Thermos out of his suit. "Guess we're three to zip now. I have some advice for next time you try to take me on." He popped the lid off the thermos and pointed it at his dazed opponent. "Don't!" The light flooded out of the thermos like a net, wrapping itself around the dazed ghost and pulling him into the mechanical steel confines. Danny slipped the lid back on and looked around, seeing no sign of Penelope Spectra. 

"Darnit. Where did she go now?" Danny floated down to the wreckage, examining it for a moment hopelessly. "Guess I have to regroup. Maybe Sam has another id... what the?" He paused when he saw something sticking out of the rubble. He knelt down and lifted it free of the ash. It was a really old picture, yellowed by age but still distinguishable. It looked like the old, living Penelope Spectra standing with one arm slung around a middle-aged woman with fiery red hair. He turned the picture over curiously and saw the words 'Penelope and Pamela Spectra: 1972' written on the back. "Hmm..." He slipped it into his suit. 

Shaking his head, Danny turned to fly back toward Amity Park. It took him a while, and he was exhausted by the time he floated down in front of his house. He changed back into his human form and slumped inside tiredly. He wanted to go to bed, but he was shocked into wakefulness when he heard his mother yell. "Danny! You're okay!" He found himself being squeezed to death by his mother. "We were so worried about you! You and your sister just disappeared, and everything was so wrecked... we were afraid you'd been kidnapped!" 

"I'm fine, mom..." Danny replied tiredly. 

"Where's your sister?" Maddie asked quickly. 

"I... I don't know." Danny replied. "I was at Sam's..." He yawned. "I don't know where Jazz went." 

"Oh dear... well, I'm so glad you're safe!" Maddie hugged him again tightly, not letting go for almost ten minutes. "You should go ahead and go to bed, we'll continue looking for her. We'll let you know the second we find anything." 

"Okay..." Danny nodded and turned to make his way upstairs. He stumbled into his room and collapsed onto the bed, falling fast asleep almost instantly. He slept straight through the night and the morning; the sun was already high in the sky before he sat up in bed, rubbing his eyes. He glanced at the clock. School would already be getting off soon. He guessed they were too glad to have him back, and too worried about Jasmine, to get him to school. That suited him fine; he couldn't focus on it right now anyway. 

After a quick shower and breakfast, Danny packed up the picture he'd found and the Fenton Thermos, then flew invisibly to Sam's mansion, floating in through the wall. "Sam." 

"Danny! There you are." Sam ran up to him and grabbed him in a tight hug. "I was worried when you didn't show up for school and..." She stopped when she realized what she was doing. She pulled back, clasping her hands behind her back. "And I didn't know what happened to you." 

"I found Penelope Spectra, and I found this." Danny held up the picture he'd found. "I don't know who the younger woman is." 

"Well, let's just find out, shall we?" Sam smiled and sat down on her bed, pulling her laptop in front of her again. Danny sat beside her and watched while she conducted a search. 

"She's Penelope Spectra's granddaughter, Pamela Spectra. She was going to college to be a doctor when she was caught in a local gang confrontation. Someone set her house on fire in the middle of the night... hey, check out the last address. It's the same one as Penelope's... and her date of death is only two weeks earlier." Sam said. "Penelope must've died of a broken heart..." 

"You know, as fascinating as all this is, I'm finding it hard to care when she's hijacked my sister's body." Danny said sharply. "Can this tell us anything useful?" 

"Okay, point taken. It's still kinda sad though." Sam replied. "Well... you said she looked like she was looking for something. Do you think this may be it?" Sam held up the picture. "Maybe we can get her to come to us." 

"How do we let her know I have it?" Danny asked. 

"I don't know..." Sam mused, rubbing her chin thoughtfully with one hand. "Wait... do you remember that ghost-dog from a few weeks ago?" 

"How could I possibly forget? Valerie is still hunting me to this day." Danny said smugly. 

"Well, it was looking for its old toy... how do you think it knew where it was?" Sam asked. "It knew it was in the building... maybe ghosts can sense things that they have a strong emotional attachment to." Sam grinned. "Which means this picture might be like a beacon itself to lure Penelope wherever we want her to go. Should we lead her to the Fenton Portal?" 

"No, my parents could get hurt. We need someplace nobody could get in the way." Danny replied. "Someplace secluded." 

"Well..." Sam thought about it a moment, then blushed. "My parents have a summer home out in the country... we could hide out there until Penelope comes for her picture." 

"We? Sam, I don't want you getting involved this time. I already have Jazz to worry about." Danny replied. 

"Danny, come off that already. I'm not letting you do this alone, I want to come with you. Besides, it's my summer home. And if you're nice, I'll bring us something to eat while we wait for her." Sam smirked smugly, putting her hands on her hips. 

"I know that look. That's the 'listen to me or suffer' look." Danny sighed. "Fine, you can come stay with me. Just promise that when Penelope gets there you'll find a place to hide and won't try to help me fight her." Sam rolled her eyes and opened her mouth, but Danny grabbed her shoulders and shook her roughly. "Promise me, Sam!" 

"Okay!" Sam shouted to get him to stop shaking her. "I promise Danny, I'll stay as far away as possible once the fighting starts. Okay?" She put her hands on his shoulders, as if calming a wild animal. Danny realized what he was doing and let her go with a heavy sigh. Sam smiled and patted his shoulder in a more friendly gesture. "Now come on, let's get some dinner prepared and we can head out to the summer home." She put her hand on his shoulder and turned to guide him to her kitchen. 

They worked together in the kitchen to make themselves some drinks and sandwiches... then decided they weren't edible and made a few stops at various restaurants to create their picnic meal. With their food in tow Danny picked up Sam and followed her directions toward her parents' summer home. It was a rather large building that looked; if possible, more expensive than the home she actually lived in. As promised it was empty at the moment, which made it perfect for his needs. 

They landed on the well-manicured front lawn and Danny turned back to his human form while Sam carried their picnic basket of food inside the house. "Come on, I'm actually a bit hungry. We can have lunch in the dining room." Sam called back to him. Danny ran to follow her through the mansion so as not to get lost in the winding corridors, and soon found himself in a massive dining room with a solid marble dining table half the length of a football field. 

"Is all this really necessary?" Danny asked. 

"No, but then neither is the 60 inch plasma screen TV in the den." Sam smirked and sat down at the table. Danny approached and sat down beside her while she proceeded to separate the foods into two equal portions. Danny took a bite of a chicken wing from KFC and smiled. 

"My compliments to the chef." Danny quipped. Sam chuckled and sat down beside him to eat. They feasted in companionable silence, letting the seconds tick by. It felt so strange. They were here waiting to be found by an evil, vengeful ghost so they could battle her for Danny's sister... but it felt rather calm and peaceful, like a picnic with a good friend. 

When their meal was finished they retired to the living room to watch some movies they found sitting on the coffee table. None of the movies were less than twenty years old, but they were still something to occupy the time. As the clock ticked away though, Danny found himself growing more anxious. Partly because he knew Penelope Spectra could turn up at any time, and partly because it would soon be nightfall, and he was still here in this summer house with Sam... alone... 

He felt his face grow hotter as he tried to focus on the movie currently playing, but his thoughts kept drifting away from the TV back over to Sam looking so cute and comfortable on the leather recliner. Without knowing it he let his gaze drift over to her, watching her staring comfortably at the TV. Suddenly she glanced at him, and one of her eyebrows shot up. 

"Danny? Is something wrong?" Sam asked. 

"No, nothing." Danny replied quickly, forcing his gaze back to the TV. He managed to stay that way for a while before his gaze slid over to her again, and this time she found her staring at him. Danny didn't say anything, staring back with an uncomfortable feeling twisting his stomach into knots. They stared at each other in tense silence until they heard the credits begin to roll. 

"Movie's over!" They stood up in unison and ran to the TV, pressing the eject button at the same time. They glanced at each other again, their chests almost pressed together in their haste to find a distraction from each other. Danny gulped, feeling his heart beating like a jackhammer. The lights in the den were off since they had started the marathon in the afternoon and hadn't thought to turn them on, and now the only illumination in the room was the golden light of the sun setting in the window directly behind Sam, ringing her raven colored hair in a halo of brilliant light. 

Sam gulped as she stared at him, their hands clasping near the DVD player. "It's... getting dark." Sam said softly. 

"It is..." Danny replied softly. 

"Someone mushy might even call it... kinda romantic..." Sam said in a soft whisper as her face turned a bright shade of red. 

"They would..." Danny agreed, his face growing hotter than ever though he didn't pull away. They moved closer together slowly, their hands still linked together near the DVD player. Slowly they leaned closer together, their eyes closing as their lips began to purse. Their lips touched tenderly, pressed together in the golden glow of the setting sun filtering in through the window. 

Danny opened his mouth slightly, and felt Sam do the same. His heart was pounding, his mind racing with panicked and excited thoughts that refused to come into clear focus. Suddenly he felt the familiar sensation of his breath catching in the back of his throat. He opened his eyes in surprise, and Sam did the same. They pulled away from each other, their mouths closed. 

Sam opened her mouth, the familiar blue mist rising from her lips into the air between them. Danny's eyes narrowed. "Find a place to hide out." He said quickly. "It's time for me to get my sister back. And Sam..." Danny took Penelope's picture out of his suit and pushed it into her arms. "Keep this safe... it might be the only bargaining chip I have." 

Sam looked indignant at the abrupt order, but didn't argue. "Okay... good luck, Danny." She turned to run deeper into the building while Danny whirled and ran back toward the living room, his body flashing and changing as he ran. The change was just ending when he flung the front door open and charged outside, looking around for any sign of Penelope Spectra. But he didn't see anything but a gentle wind brushing through the grass. 

Cautiously he searched for a few more minutes, then gave up and turned to head inside. "Maybe it was a false alAGH!" He shouted in surprise when something slammed into his cheek from beside the door when he walked inside. The door itself slammed shut, but Danny didn't pay any attention to it. He pivoted on one foot and brought his fist around straight at his attacker, but it stopped mere inches in front of it. 

Jasmine's face twisted into an unnatural lopsided grin before another fist shot out, slamming into Danny's other cheek. Danny cried out and stumbled back, trying to keep his balance. Jasmine's body paced him, and landed another harsh blow right on his nose, knocking his back against the nearby wall. Danny grunted in pain and clutched at his nose. 

"Still won't hit me?" Penelope Spectra taunted him through his sister's voice. "Why do you bother trying to resist me when you cannot even fight me?" She grabbed the front of Danny's suit and hauled him close to her twisted face, snarling angrily. "Now where is the picture? I know it's here, I can feel it. Where did you put it?" 

"Jazz, listen, it's possible to fight ghost control. I need you to fight!" Danny growled under his breath, his face inched from Jasmine's. Penelope growled darkly and hauled him away from the wall, shoving him roughly across the room. Danny stumbled into one of the many desks set up around the main entrance of the building, crashing through it to his back with a pained howl. 

"Give it up, child. The girl is so drowned in her own guilt and misery she can't hear a word anyone says. The endless, consuming cycle of depression..." Penelope grinned and clenched her fists. "It's a beautiful thing, isn't it? The only absolute in this world." She approached him and hauled him up from the shattered remnants of the desk with one hand. "And it is only getting stronger... making ME stronger!" She hurled him across the room with one arm, sending him sailing into the wall with a heavy impact. 

Danny collapsed to the floor again, rubbing the back of his neck painfully. "Jazz... come on. It wasn't your fault, it was an accident! It could've happened to anyone!" Danny slid up the wall, pleading as Penelope approached him with a deadly look in her eyes. "Jazz, snap out of it! You have to fiEGH!" Danny clutched at his throat as one of Penelope's hands latched around it, gripping him tightly. 

"Every time she hears you speak, it only drives her deeper and deeper into despair." Penelope grinned and closed her eyes, Jasmine's body glowing light green. "It feels so wonderful. Keep speaking Danny, give me more nourishment!" She gripped his throat and hurled him across the room like a baseball. His face slammed into a nearby door, breaking straight through it and sending him tumbling to the top of a flight of stairs. 

Danny pushed himself up slowly on shaking hands and knees, brushing wooden shards from the door off of his body. He climbed to his feet shakily, facing Penelope as she approached with a victorious expression in her blood-red eyes. "Jazz..." Danny grunted painfully, rubbing the bruise on his head with one hand. "Fight it... you can do it, you're the strongest woman I know..." 

"Go ahead, keep talking ghost-boy. And let me taste your suffering." She grinned and shoved him backwards, sending him tumbling head over heels down the flight of stairs into the large, well-furnished basement/movie theater. Danny hit the floor at the bottom hard and rolled a few feet, lying on the ground and groaning in pain. 

He grunted and tried to push himself up, his vision hazing over. He felt his body shift physically, the ghostly manifestation withdrawing back into his body, leaving him just a boy in pain on the floor. He tried to push him up, but one of his sister's feet slammed into his side, knocking him back to the floor onto his back. He groaned and gripped his stomach in pain. 

Jasmine's foot came down on his throat, crushing his windpipe under the edge of her boot. "Yes... you're feeling it now... the guilt... the despair! Give me more!" Penelope screamed in pleasure. 

"Jazz..." Danny struggled for breath, gripping Penelope's ankle to try to push her away. "Maybe... it was... your fault... but it doesn't... matter..." Danny pushed frantically at the boot, tears leaking out from the corners of his eyes. "I still... still l... lo..." He gasped for breath, croaking the last two words with all his strength. "Love you..." 

Jasmine's face stared down at him viciously, but suddenly he saw something else. The blood red glow faded, giving way to the emerald green that he knew so well. Jasmine's face contorted in horror and she threw herself away from him. Her back hit the wall with a jarring thud and she fell to her knees, clutching her head. "Aaaagh... no... D... Danny!" Jasmine howled in pain, her eyes squeezed shut. "What's... hap... happening...?" 

"Jazz..." Danny rolled to his feet, rubbing his throat. He growled in fury and clenched his fist. "Keep fighting it... just for a few more seconds." His body flashed, the spectral essence coating him in its empowering embrace. Jasmine yelled and stumbled around the room, stumbling to the bottom of the stairs, clutching her head with her eyes squeezed shut. Danny's hand pulsed with green light and he threw his hand forward, a surge of green light flying straight at his sister's face. 

The blast went straight through her head and out the back without touching her, but with her grip loosened, Penelope Spectra flew with it. Her black essence hurtled up the stairs and into the main hallway, breaking through the banister of the stairs that led up to the second story. Jasmine fell to her knees and Danny ran to her side. 

"Jazz, are you okay?" Danny asked, forgetting for the moment that he was supposed to be hiding his identity from her. 

"I feel so... so miserable..." Jasmine looked down at her shivering hands, then up at Danny. "What happened...?" 

"I'll explain later. You rest here. I have to finish something." Danny stood up and turned intangible, flying up the steps to the main hallway. Penelope was just extricating herself from the shards of the banister when Danny landed in front of her, his hands on his hips. "I guess you've been rejected, Spectra. It's time to go back where you belong." 

"No!" Spectra howled in a fury. "I will not allow this travesty to continue any further!" She threw herself at Danny, her fist lashing out. No longer restrained in fighting back, Danny slipped through her intangibly and grabbed one of her feet, slinging her across the room into the far wall. She hit it with a jarring impact, and Danny slammed into her, carrying them both through the wall into the kitchen where she collided with the fridge, putting a dent in the front. 

"Travesty? What you did to my sister was a travesty!" Danny howled hatefully for the first time in his superhero career. He'd fought many dangers... but he'd never felt so enraged just by a ghost's presence. "One that won't happen again!" Danny cupped his hands and fired another massive spectral blast that ripped through her black form and tore a hole in the fridge behind her, sending her hurtling outside into the dark night. Danny slipped through the wall after her, his eyes and fists pulsing green. 

Penelope pushed herself up from the ground, her blood red eyes staring up at him hatefully. "I will not allow you punks to defeat me!" She vanished into a dark cloud and whipped back toward the building. 

"No you don't!" Danny turned intangible and phased through the building, following close on her heels. He stopped and looked on in surprise however to see that she'd stopped in the main hall. Sam was standing at the top of the basement staircase, holding out the picture Danny had given her earlier. "Sam! What are you doing?" 

"Give me that picture!" Spectra howled angrily, moving toward Sam. 

"I figured it out." Sam replied, gripping each side of the picture in one hand in a ripping position. Penelope backed off slightly, her eyes wide in terror. "Why you can't rest. You dedicated your life to helping kids, helping them grow up and be happy. But none of them ever thanked you, none of them ever cared. And then they took the last precious thing you had." 

"They took my granddaughter!" Penelope Spectra howled in a pained moan that sent cold shivers down Danny's spine. Sam looked like she was shivering as well, though she didn't let go of the picture. "You... you kids don't deserve your life! You don't deserve your youth! I gave and gave and you never gave me anything! I deserve your youth and your happiness!" 

"Yeah, it's a really sad story." Sam narrowed her eyes. "But we all have sad stories. Look at Danny. He just spent the last few days scared to death that something was going to happen to his sister, one of the precious things he has. But he hasn't turned nearly as bitter as you. You don't even have something to be angry at, you're just angry for the sake of being angry." 

"Give me that picture!" Spectra howled. 

"You know what, Penelope?" Sam said with a snide sneer. "You don't deserve it." She gripped each side of the picture and ripped it half, letting the pieces flutter to the floor. 

"Nnnoooooo!" Penelope darted forward, trying desperately to grab the falling halves of the picture. But no matter how she tried, the pieces slipped through her ghostly hands and eventually landed on the floor at Sam's feet. "Pamela... Pamela..." she chanted softly, leaning down to be as close to the picture as possible. Danny silently pulled the Fenton Thermos out of his suit and pointed it down at Spectra, popping it open and letting the brilliant blue light draw her in. 

Sam smiled up at Danny solemnly and gave him a thumbs up, then turned around as Jasmine emerged from the basement behind her. She looked tired, confused, and was shaking like a leaf. 

"What's... going on...?" Jasmine asked shakily. Danny floated down between the two girls, taking each of their hands. 

"I'm taking you home, that's what." Danny phased them all into intangibility, then took off through the ceiling, carrying them both through the dark night back toward home. 

Several hours later, after much sobbing and yelling and pleading and ranting on the part of Danny's parents, Jasmine was finally able to settle down in her bed to rest. Danny and Sam were standing over her, watching her shivering form with worried eyes. Jasmine gave them the first smile he'd seen on her face since the accident. 

"Are you sure you don't remember anything?" Danny asked. 

"Not a thing..." Jasmine promised softly. "Well... I do remember one thing." Danny's breath caught in his throat, but she just reached up and gripped his hand in hers tightly. "I remember that you always believed in me... and that I love you." 

"Uh... y... yeah..." Danny coughed and glanced at Sam nervously. Jasmine chuckled and leaned back on her bed again. "Get some rest and get better soon Jazz, you have to be ready when they give your license back. I'm still gonna make you drive me everywhere." 

"I'll be there, sir." Jasmine smiled slightly. Danny patted her hand and turned to walk out with Sam with his hands jammed in his pockets. 

"I'll walk you home, if you want." Danny offered. Sam nodded and they left to walk home. The sun was beginning to peak up over the Western horizon. They'd spent the entire night fighting Penelope, and then watching their parents fawn over Jasmine like she was a wounded orphan. They approached the door to Sam's house silently, then turned to each other. 

"Sam..." Danny hesitated, looking for the right words. "I really can't thank you enough for everything you did. If it wasn't for you, I probably wouldn't have found Spectra, let alone saved Jazz." 

"Hey, don't sweat it. Helping you fight ghosts is one of the things I do, remember?" Sam smiled and punched his shoulder companionably. Danny chuckled and rubbed his shoulder, looking down at the ground. 

"And about what happened." He searched for the words, staring at the doorstep almost as if he could find them written there. "It was..." 

"Danny, one thing at a time." Sam grabbed his shoulder with a smile, drawing his gaze to her face. "And for the record... I had a wonderful time with you." She leaned in and kissed his cheek. "Goodnight, Danny." She turned to head inside, closing the door softly in his face. 

Danny watched her go, then smiled and placed a hand to his cheek as he floated off the ground. He floated through the air, carried on the soft morning wind as it wound across Amity Park. Suddenly there was a great big flash in the sky over Amity Park, and a black and white form streaked down across the town like a thunderclap, moving so fast that he almost appeared invisible, passing around and through objects like a soft wind, and leaving just as much of a disturbance behind. Soon he reached his home and flew inside, to join his sister, to rejoin his life, and to prepare for the future. 

THE END!


End file.
